Charles Leclerc has destroyed Lewis Hamilton in qualifying and in races claims F1 pundit

Former racing driver turned pundit Davide Valsecchi has asserted that Charles Leclerc has destroyed his Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton in 2025. Leclerc is currently in fifth place in the drivers' standings, and the Brit is in sixth.

Lewis Hamilton is driving in his maiden Formula 1 campaign as a Ferrari driver. Heading into the season, the expectations were high, but as the races have gone by, Hamilton has not managed to put in consistent performances. Moreover, he has yet to amass a podium finish for the Italian team with only three races remaining.

Charles Leclerc, on the other hand, has managed to get the maximum out of the inconsistent SF-25 on most occasions. The Monegasque has managed seven podiums with 214 points, whereas Hamilton is stuck on only 148.

Several pundits have had their say on the tumultuous time Lewis Hamilton has been having at Ferrari, and amid this, Davide Valsecchi has also recently come up with a fascinating take. Via a recent interaction with Fanpage.it, he has said:

"I’m a bit worried. It seems to me that the only really positive thing about Ferrari this year is Leclerc. I always thought that he lacked consistency to be at the top, but today the only thing that is rock solid is him, almost always ahead of his teammate."

"In sporting terms, he destroyed him in qualifying and in the race, and his teammate has won seven world championships. The only solid thing about the project is the young driver they have."

Charles Leclerc has been driving for the Maranello-based Ferrari Formula 1 team since 2019.

"50-50 blame with Kimi and Oscar": Charles Leclerc on his Brazilian GP DNF

Charles Leclerc started the 2025 Brazilian Grand Prix from third place on the grid. However, his outing was brought to an unfortunate end on only the sixth lap of the 71-lap race.

Going into Turn 1, Leclerc (outside), Kimi Antonelli (middle), and Oscar Piastri (inside) were three wide. Piastri locked up and touched Antonelli's car, and this in turn led to the Mercedes driver making contact with Leclerc.

While the other two were able to carry on in the race despite the contact, Leclerc's outing came to an end. A lot was said about it during and after the race, and the Monegasque driver, on his end, added:

"In this case I really think Kimi knew and was aware that Oscar was on the inside. Yes, he was not side-by-side which is the way it’s written in the rulebook, but you cannot really do a corner like nobody is on the inside if someone is on the inside, no matter how far he is." (Via: F1).

"So for me it’s a bit more of a 50-50 blame with Kimi and Oscar – I don’t think Oscar deserved all the blame there. But anyway, that doesn’t matter for me – it’s the end of the race which is very frustrating."

With only three races remaining in the 2025 Formula 1 season, Charles Leclerc is very likely to stay in his current P5 position in the drivers' standings.